THE ESSENTIAL EIGHT *
1. US attacks UK’s ‘constant accommodation’ with China – FT.com $$ The Obama administration accused the UK of a “constant accommodation” of China after Britain decided to join a new China-led financial institution that could rival the World Bank. The rare rebuke of one of the US’s closest allies came as Britain prepared to announce that it will become a founding member of the $50bn Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, making it the first country in the G7 group of leading economies to join an institution launched by China last October.// seems like it would be more constructive if the US had an alternative to offer for regional infrastructure funding, and/or realized that the bank is going to happen regardless so it is much wiser to participate and influence from within…now the White House not only looks foolish in the face of this Chinese initiative but also has caused problems with several allies…and for what gain?
Related: US anger at Britain joining Chinese-led investment bank AIIB | US news | The Guardian “I think the US has had its questions about the UK posture towards China on other issues and I suppose this announcement probably triggered renewed concern in Washington about overall British politics vis-à-vis China. But [we] don’t normally arbitrate these things in public and I’m a little unsure as to why the US has chosen to pick a fight with the UK on this bank at this time, because I thought it had somewhat softened its posture on the bank. It’s a bit surprising to me,” said Matthew Goodman, senior adviser for Asian economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Related: With Plan to Join China-Led Bank, Britain Opens Door for Others – NYTimes South Korea and Australia, both of which count China as their largest trading partner, have seriously considered membership but have held back, largely because of forceful warnings from Washington, including a specific appeal to Australia by President Obama. Peter Drysdale, a professor of economics atAustralian National University who has advised Australian governments, said the British decision would probably lead Australia to join. “I think it will play into the decision by Australia which should be made over the next few weeks,” Mr. Drysdale said Friday. He added that Australia, with its close economic ties to China, had more reason to join the bank than Britain and other European countries had.
2. Is China Really Cracking Up? | ChinaFile Conversation Howard French reminds us why you can’t just dismiss Shambaugh out of hand. I think Shambaugh’s prediction has a <10% probability of being right in the near to medium term, but he is a serious scholar with decades of experience in China, so he is far from some of the multi-decade “China collapsists” out there…too bad that Shambaugh’s WSJ piece was poorly argued, perhaps he will offer something longer and more convincing in another venue.. // perhaps the first thing to be said is that it is impossible to appreciate Shambaugh’s perspective without understanding where he “comes from.” Few among the first wave of critics have credited him for his scholarship, other than to note that he is prominent or respected within the academy. Few have explored the actual nature of his work over the years, or the findings he has made in previous writings, such as China’s Communist Party: Atrophy and Adaptation, a careful study of how the Party responded to the shock of the demise of theSoviet Union and began reinventing itself. Shambaugh gives enormous credit to the C.C.P. for these efforts, but it is clear by the time he published his subsequent book, China Goes Global: The Partial Power, that the scholar had come to the view that in many ways we have overestimated China’s strengths and underestimated its weaknesses. This is all worth spelling out because even if Shambaugh’s “crackup” theory surprised you, it has clearly not come out of thin air; rather, it is the latest wrinkle in the evolving views of an earnest scholar.
Related: 分析：英国申请加入“亚投行” 是重要的战略支持全球一财网 中国人民大学国家发展与战略研究院研究员李巍对《第一财经日报》记者表示，英国加入亚投行对中国的意义非常大。美国一直劝说韩国、澳大利亚、日本三个亚洲盟友不要加入亚投行，韩国刚刚松动要加入。而现在，美国最亲密的盟友英国也要宣布加入，这意味着美国可能完全没有办法阻止中国成立亚投行的步伐。 “如果英国加入，德国其他欧洲国家都可以加入。这样亚投行就能真诚成为一个由全球股东参与的重要开发性银行”，李巍说。
Related: dpa news – Chinese debate potential collapse of Communist Party President Xi Jinping is indeed “facing a big crisis as he tries to consolidate power and continue his anti-corruption campaign,” Beijing-based independent commentator Zhang Lifan told dpa. “If he fails, the regime will not be able to handle the consequences.” Zhang Ming, a political scientist at People’s University in Beijing, disagreed, saying the leadership clarified their aims during the congress and will be able to implement their goals. Both men were responding to a controversial essay published Saturday by US scholar David Shambaugh, professor of international affairs at George Washington University.
Related: Bias brings shame to Shambaugh- China Daily – Chen Weihua In the 1990s, some American scholars and journalists indulged themselves in forecasting a China collapse into several republics, like the Soviet Union. Some based their arguments on the growing regionalism in the country, others bet on the passing away of Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping. To their disappointment, China has not disintegrated into six or seven republics. Instead it has become the world’s second-largest economy and it is well on its way to being No 1. Yet the rise of China has not discouraged some in the United States from continuing to fantasize about the breakup of China. // Chen is a Chinafile contributor, wonder if he will contribute this to the current conversation
Related: 中国政治制度有明显的优越性（国际论坛）–国际–人民网 Meanwhile,Martin Jacques takes to People’s Daily to praise the “obvious superiority” of the Chinese political system
Related: Obama Comes Out as an NK Collapsist | 38 North: Informed Analysis of North Korea Aidan Foster-Carter on his 20 years about being wrong about an impending DPRK collapse…makes interesting reading for China watchers too… // Mr. President, I too was a DPRK collapsist. And look, I have 20-plus years of encrusted egg on my face to prove it. Take it from me: Don’t go there. Think again. Indeed, think outside the box. North Korea will do anything for money. Why not hire a KPA brigade to go kick ISIS ass? A wild idea, sure, but no crazier than some of what’s going around in Washington.
3. China’s Carbon Emissions Drop for the First Time Since 2001 – Bloomberg Business Total carbon emissions in the world’s second-biggest economy dropped 2 percent in 2014 compared with the previous year, the first drop since 2001, according to a Bloomberg New Energy Finance estimate based on preliminary energy demand data from China’s National Bureau of Statistics. “Coal demand is slowing” while all other fuels, including oil, gas and renewables, are being consumed more, said Sophie Lu, a Beijing-based analyst at BNEF.
Related: BBC News – China eyes fundamental shift in energy policy “There are priorities driving Chinese policy makers to move faster than they are used to,” says Li Yan, head of climate and energy campaign for Greenpeace East Asia. “I think that the environmental crisis we’re facing right now, especially the air pollution – no-one expected this to be a top political priority four years ago but look at where we are now,” she says. “The issue is shaping energy policy, economic policy and even local agendas in the most polluted regions.” Here, she says, the public simply “cannot bear the air quality the way it is any longer”.
Related: Planning agency’s Zhang Yong to lead China in crucial climate talks in Paris | South China Morning Post The National Development and Reform Commission’s new deputy director Zhang Yong will succeed retired top negotiator Xie Zhenhua to lead China to reach an international climate change deal in Paris in December. “Zhang has already been appointed. He will oversee the climate change issues and lead the negotiation,” Xie confirmed exclusively with the South China Morning Post at the sidelines of the closing ceremony of the annual Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference session on Friday.
4. 刘源：自己在抓徐才厚、谷俊山时起了点小作用新闻腾讯网 video of interview with Gen. Liu Yuan, says Xi was instrumental in pressing the corruption investigations against Xu Caihou and Gu Junshan // 刘源表示，古今中外，各个国家的政府和军队都有腐败，关键看如何反腐！大家知道，军队是要完成急难险重多样化任务、需要出生入死的武装集团，必须有严密的组织、严格的纪律和严厉的军法。我们军队的反腐是严格在体制内进行的。抓出徐才厚、谷俊山这样的大贪巨奸，是习近平主席决定、督办的，没有习主席的魄力、胆识和担当精神，军队可真没救了！所以首先是感佩习主席！感谢党中央！我个人即使起了点小作用，也是在履行职责，尽点本份，应该做的。
Related: 军方将领驳斥“买官卖官明码标价波及全军”-新闻频道-和讯网 Luo Yuan, Global Tines, others not happy with WSJ report on PLA corruption // 继不久前外媒指摘中国反腐败斗争具有政治动机，近日，又有针对解放军反腐的异样声音。 3月11日，美国《华尔街日报(博客,微博)》刊文炮轰中国军队军衔买卖成风，且已形成恶性循环波及全军。 对此，军队多位人士发声给予驳斥此种“怪论”。3月13日出版的《环球时报》发出了军事战略问题专家彭光谦少将和中国战略文化促进会常务副会长兼秘书长罗援少将的批驳声音。
Related: 天子治军旧规尽破 30名“军虎”名单背后_中国-多维新闻网 徐才厚的倒下似乎是遵循了同周永康、令计划类似的策略，也就是由外而内的剪裙边式围剿，直到最终收缚其核心人物。表面看来，郭伯雄势力被剪除没有跳出这一路径，儿子、秘书、兄弟都已经陷入漩涡，本人也呼之欲出。不过也可能有所调整，也即在大势已定的情况下已经“擒贼先擒王”，因为缺乏合适的时机，暂时只是分割、包围、消灭其“党羽”、涉案亲属等相关群体。 当具体到个人的调动处理，又有一套不同的操作技巧。徐才厚是退休人员，但打虎两榜中的绝大多数都是在职时被拿下。其中多位是被巧妙地被升迁或平调至边缘化位置之后，才被顺利调查。如此既能减少阻力，又不至于产生太大的负面影响。这在出身总政的刘洪杰、于大清、马向东三人身上体现得最为明显。
Related: “红二代”集中现身解局 郭伯雄形势危急_中国-多维新闻网 Duowei on the recent comments by several Red Nobility PLA officers supporting the PLA corruption crackdown…expect it to intensify // 观察人士表示，除王洪光之外，刘源、朱和平、刘建、罗援等红色后代也都在两会中密集发声，并且或间接或直接地点到郭伯雄，几乎已经明言郭伯雄有问题，而且将要步徐才厚后尘。鉴于“打虎榜”中，郭伯雄之子郭正钢、出身总政的刘洪杰和出身兰州军区的范长秘均与郭伯雄有所关联，郭伯雄确属岌岌可危。
5. U.S. students losing interest in China as dream jobs prove elusive | Reuters Enrolment in entry level Chinese is almost half the level of 2007 atMiddlebury College, a private liberal arts college in Vermont renowned for its language instruction. Last year’s total Chinese enrolment was “the lowest in a decade”, said Professor Thomas Moran, chair of Middlebury’s Chinese department.
6. China Said to Hold War Military Parade at Japan Attack Site – Bloomberg Business The September parade to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Japan’s defeat will probably be held at a square next to Beijing’s Marco Polobridge, rather than at Tiananmen Square, where military processions are traditionally held, said the officials, who asked not to be named as the plan isn’t public…“It’s a way of showing that they have absolutely no interest in improving relations with Japan,” said Robert Dujarric, director of the Institute of Contemporary Asian Studies at Temple University Japan Campus. “Rather than symbolizing the defeat of the Fascists, the Axis, it would commemorate thevictory over Japan because Marco Polo bridge has nothing to do with the Fuhrer or Mussolini.”
7. Toxic manure lagoons spark battle over Chinese-owned pigs in the US | Reveal What do China, its rapidly growing middle class and toxic manure lagoons in North Carolina have in common? Absolutely nothing. And even if they did, don’t mention it. So say attorneys for the Chinese company that now owns America’s largest pork producer, Smithfield Foods. They have asked a federal judge to forbid people who live near these manure lagoons from mentioning the new Chinese owners – or the country of China or pork exports to China – in court. The attorneys are defending the company against at least 25 nuisance lawsuits
8. 官员“非正常死亡”：有人被脱光放入冰桶中闷死-手机凤凰网 Caijing looks at 99 cases of suicide or suspected suicide by officials since the 18th Party Congress // 《财经》记者 王丽娜 实习记者 邬川/文 -2015年2月7日晚21时许，广东佛山市南海狮山一处停车场，一名中年男子从高处坠落致死。随后，警方证实死者是时年51岁的佛山市体育局副局长刘慧芳，死因暂无可疑，排除他杀。据称，刘慧芳生前有抑郁症表现。 刘慧芳之死给日益引起关注的官员非正常死亡现象又增一例。 利用公开信息，《财经》记者搜集整理了一份官员非正常死亡情况表，主要统计对象是经认定为自杀的案例或疑似自杀案例，少数案例属于未经证实是自杀或他杀等意外导致的非正常死亡。统计时间是自中共“十八大”后的2012年12月至2015年2月7日，共收集整理了99个案例。因无法掌握全面情况，这是一份不完全统计表。
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